1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to floor care, and more specifically, to a floor care appliance having a port for connecting the microprocessor control system to a computer.
2. Summary of the Prior Art
Floor care appliances are well known in the art. Typical floor care appliances include upright vacuum cleaners, canister vacuum cleaners, hard floor cleaners, and extractors. More recently floor care appliances have been provided with increasingly sophisticated microprocessor based control systems for controlling one or more features including, for example, a suction motor, agitator motor, bag full indicators, and the like. Typically, such microprocessors are permanently pre-programmed at the factory with instructions for controlling the features. The microprocessors are not connected to any electronic hardware which would enable programming to be updated if required. It would be desirable to have the flexibility of updating the programming of the microprocessor as more sophisticated programming becomes available. Also, with the addition of hardware to connect the microprocessor to a computer, the microprocessor becomes more useful. For example, the microprocessor could be programmed to store real time operational data in a log that could be read by a computer for diagnostics purposes. The computer could be a local personal computer or a remote computer.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,637,546 discloses a carpet cleaning machine provided with a microprocessor which controls various components. The microprocessor is software controlled and can provide sequential operating instructions to the operator, enforce start-up and shut down sequences, store an electronic record of operating parameters for future use, provide auto- and remote diagnostics, and provide remote control. The software is updated via a modem.
However, updating the microprocessor software via a modem is not the only way to update microprocessor software and may not be the most desired means. With the adaptation of readily available access to high speed computer network services, such as the Internet, and most homes having a personal computer connected to the Internet, it may be more desirable to update microprocessor software from a personal computer connected to a remote computer through a computer network such as the Internet. Accordingly, there is a need in the art for a floor care appliance having a microprocessor based control system that can be connected to a personal computer.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a floor care appliance having a microprocessor based control system that can be connected to a computer.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a floor care appliance having a microprocessor based control system that can be connected to a personal computer.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a floor care appliance having a microprocessor based control system that can be connected to a personal computer via a digital pathway.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a floor care appliance having a microprocessor based control system that can be connected to a personal computer via a wireless connection.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a vacuum cleaner having a microprocessor based control system that can be connected to a remote computer via a modem.